C.B. West, Tennent to face off for title

Central Bucks West moved closer to a seventh district championship, and William Tennent earned a shot at its first crown.

Last night, in a PIAA District 1 Class AAA girls' soccer semifinal doubleheader at War Memorial Field in Doylestown, C.B. West blanked Neshaminy, 1-0, and William Tennent turned back Council Rock North, 2-1.

With a goal in the 67th minute from Ashley Klun, C.B. West triumphed in a defensively played opener. Converting William Tennent's only second-half shot, sophomore Laura Carroll made the difference in the 69th minute of the nightcap.

For the Bucks, two-time state champions, Klun, a senior midfielder, only occasionally ventures deep into an opponent's territory. Against Neshaminy, she picked the perfect time to join the goal-scoring attack.

Positioned inside the 6-yard line, Klun took a left-side cross from Amanda Fleischut and directed the ball into the net to give the fourth-seeded Bucks the win over the top-seeded Redskins.

"The ball came right at me and I kind of just deflected it," Klun said. "It came right off my foot, went past their defender and the goalie."

In the first half, Klun had made only a few runs upfield. "That one run turned out to be the difference," she said. "I was glad I was there."

In the left corner, Fleischut, a junior forward, did a terrific job of swiping the ball from a defender and slamming it into the middle of the box.

"She has the best work rate on the flank," Klun said. "I give her a lot of credit for the play she made on the ball."

Tomorrow night at 8 at War Memorial, the Bucks (16-4-2) will take on the second-seeded Panthers (16-4-1) for the championship. At 5:45, Neshaminy (19-2) will play third-seeded C.R. North (14-5-1) for third place. All four teams have earned berths in the state tournament.

For C.B. West, Klun is primarily a defensive midfielder. The captain spends a lot of time winning 50-50 balls, often in the air, and clearing dangerous balls for a perennially stingy back line.

"Ashley is great," Bucks coach Chris Freudig said. "She's back there, karate-kicking balls out of the air, putting her body on the line. The more she's on the field, the better we are."

Against Neshaminy, whose only other loss came against C.R. North, Christina Cassidy made six saves while earning the shutout. C.B. West's defenders included Mary Kate McCrea, Liz McGeoy, Colleen McQuate and Rachael Sheridan.

"It was all cluttered in the midfield," Redskins coach Rich Reice said. "We didn't have a lot of rhythm to what we were trying to do."

On a wet turf, the Bucks totaled just four shots. "We're not scoring a lot," Freudig said. "But at this time of year, it's defense. If you can defend, you're going to be in games."

In the final, William Tennent will try for its third consecutive win against the Bucks. The Panthers won twice during the regular season, by 2-1 and 3-0.

Central Bucks West 0 1 - 1

Neshaminy 0 0 - 0

Goals: CBW–Ashley Klun.

Saves: CBW–Christina Cassidy 6; N–Chelsea Rota 2.

Council Rock North 1 0 - 1

William Tennent 1 1 - 2

Goals: CRN–Kim Nordtveit; WT–Dana O'Brien, Laura Carroll.

Saves: CRN–Kate Logan 7; WT–Allison Burke 5.